Beatrice had no problems with her stepbrother degrading his dignity. In fact, it would be advantageous for her if he did such a thing. However, it was evident that her majesty would also be demeaned as she had asked him to be her partner. Panicking, she tried to make sense of the situation.
‘Is he getting revenge for the time I made him wear the mask alone during his victory banquet?’ she shuddered. She didn’t know her malicious intentions would return like this. She couldn’t dare to think of entering the banquet hall hand-in-hand with someone dressed as the Grim Reaper.
‘What do I do?’
If she could, Beatrice wanted to abandon the requests she had made and enter the hall on her own. She didn’t care about having a partner at this point. Nonetheless, as long as her vicious stepbrother had made up his mind, she would be forced to enter with him.
‘This is my once-in-a-lifetime ball…’
Unable to overcome the despair, Beatrice sagged to the floor.
“Your Highness, please wake up.”
‘Huh?’ Startled by the familiar voice of one of her maids, Beatrice’s eyes fluttered open.
* * *
The girl sat up and looked around in a daze; it was still dark.
‘Was it a dream?’
Beatrice recollected what had happened with a hazy mind. She then realized that many strange things led her to believe it was indeed a nightmare.
‘Yes… There is no way Mother won’t attend my coronation ceremony. Also…’
“We mean His Highness, Your Ladyship. Isn’t it a relief that at least he has an adequate appearance?”
‘There’s no way my maids would praise that eyesore. That is—as long as those girls are sane.’
Her stepbrother now on her mind, Beatrice scowled. ”Adequate appearance’… Ha! I cannot believe I heard such nonsense even in my dreams.’ Chills traveled down her spine just then, prompting her to shiver. Beatrice shook her head.
‘I’ve heard that dreams are the opposite of reality… which means today will be a great day.’
With these thoughts, Beatrice went back to bed.
* * *
It was moments before dawn, and amid the fading moonlight sat a man in solitude—his eyes reflecting the pale light.
‘What should I do?’
Once today was over, he would finally be able to hear the long-awaited answer to his confession. The only problem was…
‘If she found out about my identity before then…’
Max recalled Jubelian’s hatred toward the crown prince.
“Dangerous animals like bears or leopards are still scary even if one has never seen them. It’s similar to that. If I meet him, then my life will be put in danger.”
“Do you know how I felt when I realized the similarity between the two letters? I was scared out of my mind—so frightened that I had goosebumps throughout my body.”
He had done everything he could to clear up the misunderstandings, but the lady still loathed the crown prince.
‘This isn’t the time,’ he decided.
It wouldn’t be too late to reveal his identity after Jubelian learned what kind of person the prince was and relieved her hatred toward him. For now, it was more important to get through the banquet without problems. Having come to such conclusions, Max began to look for a way to hide his face. His attention lingered on his charcoal armor for a moment.
‘That’s not a bad idea. She would definitely throw a fit,’ he smirked, thinking of how Beatrice would react. However, his bright expression did not last long. ‘No, Jubelian might become more afraid of the crown prince if I show up wearing the armor.’
Max had never paid attention to what others thought of him despite the numerous malicious rumors. However, he was now concerned about a single person’s perceptions.
‘How did I end up like this?’
Something caught his eye then. Max laughed as he recalled how his stepsister tried to embarrass him during the victory banquet.
‘Oh, Beatrice. I will get you back for what you’ve done.’
Max wore a sinister smile, anticipating his sister’s reaction the following morning.
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